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Q & A: Iridium Go! or Go Exec

Question

The new Predict Wind Iridium Go Exec device does indeed have a subscription plan that limits data according to how much one pays, i.e: $159.95/month buys you only 50MB of data. That includes all data transfer including tracking data.

Do you happen to have a clue how much data you found that you used, on the average, per month with the original Iridium Go device?

I am just trying to figure out what size plan would be needed in order to not have to worry about constantly hitting the ceiling towards the end of the month. I believe you & I would have similar usage (that is forecasts & basic emails).

Answer

The exact amount of data we used varied a lot, so I don’t think that’s the way to make the decision.

Rather, what I can say is that we never had a problem getting all the weather information I needed, and I download a lot more than most people, as well as being able to handle all of our email, which, again, is a heavier load than most people, because of running AAC.

Sure, sometimes the GO! took as much as an hour to deal with all that, but so what? With good software you don’t need to sit around and watch it, and if there’s a drop-out it reconnects automatically and continues on until done.

So if it were me, I would stick with GO! to get the unlimited plan, given that I just don’t want the stress and aggravation of worrying about a hard data limit and the huge charges if that gets inadvertently breached.

I also would not want to have to figure out how to buy more data if I ran out while at sea.

So given that GO Exec is not fast enough to surf the internet, and does not have an unlimited data plan, I just don’t see the point of it against the original GO! with an unlimited plan.

That said, as I have said before, being able to make calls without the kluge of a connected smart phone is a nice upgrade, but not enough to push me into Exec. Rather I would recommend buying a secondhand Iridium handset for the emergency call function.

More on exactly how to use G0! For both strategic and tactical weather forecasting.

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Philip Merlier

Excellent response. Thank you for your insights based on real life personal experiences.

Brian Hill

We are absolutely mystified by the new IridiumGo Exec. It seems like the last gasps of a dying patient. We’re happy users of our IridiumGo (and will continue to be) but for the money that PredictWind is asking for the new Exec we would simply purchase Starlink. Happy to stick with the original IridiumGo for our weather and emails while offshore or away from cellular data.

Brian Hill

Hi John, thanks for your response. WRT my Starlink comment, it was in regards to the surprisingly similar acquisition costs (ex the “maritime” package for Starlink) between Exec and Starlink. We’ve yet to purchase Starlink for the reason you cite: the lack of offshore support for the RV package (though most seem to have no problems using it offshore). We’re happy to use standard IridiumGo for our offshore passages.
Regarding the cellular options, so far in our travels, we’ve found getting a local data SIM has been more than adequate. Last season in Fiji we had monthly data costs of $50 FJD which got us 500GB of data. The Bahamas was only slightly more expensive. Currently here in NZ, we have unlimited data for $100 NZD per month.
It is this knowledge that leaves us mystified with the pricing of the IridiumGo Exec. It just doesn’t seem to make any sense when one surveys the options out there.